A masterplan has been created for this part of Dover which exploits its full potential by providing stronger links to the town centre, improving public open space and car parking space, whilst creating 75 new homes, a hotel and a major new supermarket.
The scheme will address local problems of high unemployment and economic dependency on the Port, diversifying the attractiveness of the town centre economically and providing a range of jobs. Increasingly traders in Dover Town Centre have suffered a significant loss of business in recent years due to a number of major retailers relocating to the outskirts of the town.
SEEDA's grant will be used to help acquire key sites in the regeneration area so that the project can go ahead. Dover District Council has also committed £750,000 to the project and has agreed to contribute land worth £500,000. Kent County Council is contributing £500,000 to the scheme and national regeneration agency English Partnerships has expressed its intention to invest in the redevelopment of the St James area as well as the wider regeneration of Dover.
Dover District Council secured a joint venture development partner for the area, Bond City Limited, in 2003. A planning application was submitted in 2005, supported by SEEDA.
It is likely that construction work on the site will begin in mid-2008. The St James' regeneration project is part of the Dover Pride Regeneration Strategy, a multi-agency project to redevelop the whole of this key coastal town. Partners include Dover District Council, Dover Harbour Board, Kent County Council, SEEDA, the Government Office for the South East (GOSE), Business Link Kent, Learning and Skills Council for Kent and Medway, Dover Chamber of Commerce, East Kent Partnership and the London Fancy Box Company. |
